Newspapers / Winston-Salem Chronicle (Winston-Salem, N.C.) / Oct. 17, 2013, edition 1 / Page 2
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Panel tackles charters and vouchers BY LAYLA GARMS THE CHRONICLE A diverse group of experts debated the pros and cons of changes coming to the North Carolina educa tion system during a public forum at Wake Forest ^University on Tuesday, Oct. 8. "School Choice, Charters and Vouchers," as the event was dubbed, drew a near-capacity audience to the university's Welcome Center. The discussion was a collaboration among the Wake Forest Department of Politics and International Affairs, 88.5 WFDD radio and the nonprofit Forsyth Education Partnership. It featured commentary from Darrell Allison, president of Parents for Educational Freedom in North Carolina; Sara Dahill-Brown, an asso ciate professor of politics and international affairs at WFU; North Carolina Association of Educators President Rodney Ellis,; Arts Based School Principal Robin Hollis; and former Winston Salem/Forsyth County Schools Superintendent Don Martin WFDD's Ken Brown mod erated the discussion, which explained the differences among the three educational options. The panelists discussed charter schools, which will be more prevalent through out the state since lawmak ers removed a cap that lim ited the number of charters that could operate. Charters are publicly funded but are not required to provide transportation, free or reduced lunch options or provisions for special needs pupils, but have more flexibility to innovate and create their educational approaches based upon the student pop ulations they serve, pan elists said. Hollis, who has led the Arts Based School - one of five charter schools in the city - for over a decade, said charters have more power to decide how to prioritize their funds and educate their stu dents than tradi tional schools. Teachers and administrators at charters are typi cally not tenured, and, thusly, are challenged to live up to the schools' standards each year or risk termi nation, Hollis said. "Really, I think ot charter schools as the opportunity to improve edu cation," she said.. .We use dance and drama and visual arts to teach the Standard Course of Study, but each charter school has its own passion and its own vision for what it's delivering to its students." Area public schools also offer a variety of options for families, through magnet schools and "choice zones," where students can opt to attend any of the schools in a given area. Martin said. The Choice Plan, which was rolled out in 1995, has received both criticism and praise; some appreciate the expanded choice options. while others contend that the plan has re segregated the school system. The controversial pri vate school vouchers - or "opportunity scholarships," where students whose fami lies meet certain income requirements will be eligi ble to receive up to $4,200 in public funding to attend a private school beginning in the 2014-15 school year - were a hot topic of conver sation at the forum. Allison, whose organization bills itself as "a statewide organ ization that supports greater educational options through parental school choice," believes the scholarships could be the answer to equalizing the educational system for the state's poor est students. "Where you live deter mines the quality of educa tion that your child is going to get in public schools," he said. "...We believe that the more options that you have on the table, the better the chances for the family - regardless of your income, regardless of your zip code - to have a school that works for you." Dahill-Btown, who has researched school outcomes in Wisconsin, home of the oldest school choice pro gram, said that similar pro grams in other states have not achieved significant improvements in the aca demic performance of the students who take advan tage of the vouchers. Ellis railed against the plan, which he called "by far the most detrimental leg islation for North Carolina students" that the General Assembly has passed. The vouchers would only be offered to students whose families are at or below 100 percent of the federal pover ty level and dissenters say they make no provisions for transportation, fees and other costs associated with attending a private institu tion. Private schools are not required to accept voucher students, Ellis noted. "I think the biggest problem for me is that it's not actually addressing the issue. At some point, the conversation has to turn to how do we provide the best quality education for every child?" said the former WSFCS educator. "...I don't think that the voucher bill lets us get to the root of the problem here." If private schools are going to receive public funding through the vouch ers. they should be held to the same accountability standards as public schools and charters are, Martin said. "If we're not assessing the students, we will not know whether we're closing that gap or not," he noted. Ktri Brown Photos by Layla Garnis Panelists (from left): Darrell Allison, Darrell Allison, Dr. Donald Martin, Rodney Ellis and Sara Dahill-Brown. Pride W-S Photo Pride Festival is Saturday CHRONICLE STAFF REPORT The 2013 Pride Winston-Salem Festival - "Live Proud Winston-Salem" - is coming to the streets of downtown on Saturday, Oct. 19, beginning at 9:30 a.m. with a "Breakfast Crawl & Parade Viewing Party" at several downtown eateries. The parade will start at 11 a.m. It will begin at Spring and Fourth streets and end on Trade Street, where the heart of the Pride Festival will be held. For much of the day on Trade - the downtown Arts District - more than 85 vendors will set up booths, rapid HIV testing will be available and a kids' zone will be buzzing with games and activities. OUTLaw, Wake Forest School of Law's group for LGBT stu dents and allies, will also be on hand to offer pro bono legal services and a long list of performers will take to a soundstage. Old country soulster Hannah Thomas is this year's headliner. Frank Benedetti and Gary Trowbridge, who have been together for 50 years, and Lennie Gerber and Pearl Berlin, who have been a couple for 47 years, will serve as the grand marshals of the parade. On Sunday, Oct. 20, Pride Winston-Salem will launch "Pride Gives Back," which will challenge those in the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community to show in-kind support to those that sup port the community and help to foster a more inclusive Winston-Salem through charity and volunteerism. The event is free and open to all. See a full sched ule of events at pridewinstonsalem.org. The Chronicle (USPS 067-910) was established by Ernest H. Pitt and Ndubisi Egemonye in 1974 and is published every Thursday by Winston-Salem Chronicle ftiblishing Co. Inc., 617 N. Liberty Street, Winston-Salem, N.C. 27101. Periodicals postage paid at Winston-Salem, N.C. Annual subscription price is S30.72. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to: The Chronicle, P.O. Box 1636 Winston-Salem, NC 27102-1636 II Right choice, | right price. I I Medicare Advantage plans are only available to Medicare beneficiaries Get trusted coverage at the right price from BCBSNC. ? ? 2013 BCBSNC HMO Standard plan rated overall ? ? ? ? ? Quality health care coverage for more than 80 years. ? SilverSneakers*1, a fitness membership at no additional cost.3 ? Strong network of contracted doctors and hospitals. Including Forsyth Medical Center; Lexington Memorial Hospital, Inc., High Point Regional Health System, Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center. Other providers are also available in our network. Annual Election Period ends December 7,2013. Attend a meeting to learn more I about our Medicare Advantage plans. Prospective new enrollees wilt receive a $10 gas card gift certificate as a thank you - and there's no obligation to enroll in a plan! Cannot be redeemed '"^g forcash f I I Wed., Oct. 23 and 30 10:00 a.m. Kernersville YMCA 1113 W. Mountain St. Kernersville Thursday, Oct. 24 10:00 a.m. and 2:00 p.m. Village Inn & Golf Center 6205 Ramada Dr. Clemmons Monday, Oct. 28 10:00 a.m. and 2:00 p.m. Hampton Inn 309 Summit Square Ct. Winston-Salem |w{5l ?f) BlueCroM BlueShield of North Carolina Smart choic? for Medicare ? I 'Awarded to BCBSNC by the Ethisphere Institute. In 2013, companies in more than 100 countries and 36 industries were reviewed and of those 138 organizations were designated as World's Most Ethical. Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina is an HMO and PPO plan with a Medicare contract Enrollment in Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina depends on contract renewal. Benefits, formulary, pharmacy network, premium and/or copayment/coinsurance may change on January 1,2015. The benefits information provided is a brief summary, but not complete description of available benefits. Additional information about benefits is available to assist you in making a decision about your coverage. This is an advertisement; for more information contact the plan. 1) You must continue to pay your Part B premium. Rate is for Blue Medicare HMO Standard Plan, 2014.2) Medicare evaluates plans based on a 5-Star rating system. Star Ratings are calculated each year and may change from one year to the next, http://www.medicare gov. 3) The SilverSneakers program is provided by Healthways, Inc., a third-party vendor independent of BCBSNC. 4) An authorized sales representative will be present with information and applications. There is no obligation to enroll. 5) Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina is a PDP plan with a Medicare contract. Enrollment in Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina depends on contract renewal. ? Mark of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association. ?1 Mark of Healthways, Inc. Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina is an independent licensee of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield I Association. U7671,7/13 Y0079_6280 CMS Accepted 08182013
Winston-Salem Chronicle (Winston-Salem, N.C.)
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